As retirement decision looms, less than half of eligible troops have taken mandatory training

With about two months to go before eligible service members can opt into the new Blended Retirement System, less than half of these 1.6 million troops have completed the mandatory training, officials said. About 43 percent of the service members eligible to choose the new retirement system have taken the required course, Defense Department spokesman Army Maj. Dave Eastburn said. The opt-in period starts Jan. 1, and eligible service members have all of 2018 to make their BRS decision. “Our goal is to train eligible service members by Dec. 31, 2017, however DoD policy only requires the course be completed prior to the service member opting into BRS,” Eastburn said. No one is automatically moved to the BRS, but some service members can choose to stay in the current system or jump to the new one: Active-duty service members with fewer than 12 years of total service as of Dec. ...